Islamabad [Pakistan], Dec. 16 (ANI): At least 19 employees of the Pakistan Foreign Office posted in missions abroad have used the opportunity to leave the country and slip away.
These employees appear on a list of Foreign Office staffers, who were sent to Pakistani missions in the First World countries where they promptly proceeded to disappear for good, reports the Express tribune.
The Pakistani authorities are unaware whether these employees, plan on seeking asylum, became illegal immigrants or have betrayed their country because none of them maintained any contact with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs after their disappearance.
These runaway officials were posted in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain and Mexico from where they skipped and their whereabouts are yet unknown to the authorities.
The US remains the most popular destination where eight of these staffers disappeared followed by the UK with three, and two each in France and Sweden and one each in Canada, Switzerland, Spain and Mexico.
These employees disappeared during the last five years.
After disappearance, they were served showcause notices and later declared absconders.
While some of them obtained premature retirement, some were dismissed from service and others retired compulsorily on disciplinary grounds.
Reacting to the situation, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) vice-chairman and former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said: "This reflects an overall tendency of the Pakistani nation where everyone prefers to live and work abroad for a variety of reasons, including bad governance and lack of opportunities back in the country."
He said that majority of such officials later claim asylum in the host country, citing different reasons.
"Mainly low-grade staffers opt to choose this path," he observed. (ANI)